The comeback
3.1 yrs
off the trail, then back
Off the trail for 3.1 years, then back at Desoto Shrine Club BBQ Cook off (Jun 15, 2018).
- last seen May 8, 2015
- back Jun 15, 2018
FATHEAD BBQ
FATHEAD BBQ is a competition barbecue team with 5 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2015 and 2020. Their best overall finish is 11th of 17 at the Smoke on the Midway (BACKYARD ONLY) (). Also listed in KCBS results as “Fat Head BBQ”.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1468
Unranked — needs 5 rated contests, has 4
Contests
5
in the data
First seen
May 8, 2015
latest Jun 19, 2020 · 5.1 years on the trail
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
0 podiums
Overall top-10s
0
0% of 5 contests
Avg finish
top 81%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Walk rate
20%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±18.22
spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Chicken
avg 161.00 · weakest Brisket (147.23)
Road miles
1,423
across 4 mapped stops · furthest 474 mi
Schedule strength
47%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1560)
Purse competed for
$21K
listed at 3 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
won from 3 state-championship entries
Master avg
627.12 / 720
4 Master contests · 0 GCs
Backyard avg
302.21 / 360
1 Backyard contest · 0 GCs
These overall scores sit on different scales (Master out of 720, Backyard out of 360), so they're kept separate — averaging them together would be misleading.
This team cooks the Backyard series — its own boards, records and Team of the Year are here.
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to FATHEAD BBQ, each with one reason worth a look.
FATHEAD BBQ has 4 rated contests, short of the five a power ranking needs, so its rating is still close to the 1500 every team starts on and 154 rated teams sit within a point of it.
#4,750 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1468
0–1 in 1 shared contest (0% to FATHEAD BBQ)
One contest in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team FATHEAD BBQ has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.
⚔ Head-to-head#4,723 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 20%
- Peak
- 1468
Careers of much the same size, 5 contests to 5, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#4,746 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 20%
- Peak
- 1468
They turned up 10 years after FATHEAD BBQ did, first appearing in 2025.
⚔ Compare careers#4,729 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1468
Level with FATHEAD BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Compare careers#4,737 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1468
Careers of much the same size, 5 contests to 5, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#4,719 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1469
Careers of much the same size, 5 contests to 5, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careersBy meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 166.2628 | 153.0860 | 161.00 | top 65% |
| Pork Ribs | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 166.3316 | 144.4912 | 158.02 | top 71% |
| Pork | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 162.2400 | 145.1200 | 155.20 | top 84% |
| Brisket | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 153.6572 | 138.1944 | 147.23 | top 92% |
“Calls” = top-10 category finishes (getting called to the stage). Scores here are the final weighted totals KCBS publishes; per-criterion appearance/taste/tenderness marks aren’t in the public results feed.
By field size and state
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small (<20 teams) | 1 | 0 | top 65% |
| Medium (20–39) | 1 | 0 | top 87% |
| Large (40+) | 3 | 0 | top 84% |
Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boss Hog State Championship Cook-OFF | 2 | 34 | 0 | top 85% | May 10, 2019 |
More numbers
Contests a season
1
across 5 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
MS
2 of 5 contests · 3 states in all
Contests visited
4
1 of them more than once
Opponents faced
169
finished ahead 33 times, behind 156
Longest layoff
3.1 yrs
May 8, 2015 → Jun 15, 2018
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20203 milestones
- Career-best overall score647.3144 Desoto Shrine Club 12th Annual BBQ Cook-Off
- Career-best single call (Pork Ribs)166.3316 Desoto Shrine Club 12th Annual BBQ Cook-Off
- Most recent contest Desoto Shrine Club 12th Annual BBQ Cook-Off
20151 milestone
- Peak power rating (1490) Boss Hog State Championship Cook-Off (GBC Qualifier)
—2 milestones
- First tracked contest Smoke on the Midway (BACKYARD ONLY)
- First call Smoke on the Midway (BACKYARD ONLY)
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -10.5 | Boss Hog State Championship Cook-Off (GBC Qualifier) | May 8, 2015 |
| -8.1 | Desoto Shrine Club BBQ Cook off | Jun 15, 2018 |
| -6.7 | Desoto Shrine Club 12th Annual BBQ Cook-Off | Jun 19, 2020 |
| -6.5 | Boss Hog State Championship Cook-OFF | May 10, 2019 |
Scores over time (% of a perfect score — tap a meat to add it)
Overall finish over time (top-% of field, lower is better)
Where they finish (overall)
Best vs average (by meat)
How entries end (by meat)
Season by season
| Season | Contests | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | top 65% | 83.9% | 83.9% |
| 2020 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 83% | 89.9% | 89.9% |
| 2019 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 83% | 85.9% | 85.9% |
| 2018 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 84% | 89% | 89% |
| 2015 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 87% | 83.5% | 83.5% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 19, 2020 | Desoto Shrine Club 12th Annual BBQ Cook-Off 🏅 Hernando, MS | 39 / 47 (647.3144) | 35 (166.2400) | 35 (166.3316) | — | 41 (153.6572) |
| May 10, 2019 | Boss Hog State Championship Cook-OFF 🏅 Waynesboro, GA | 35 / 42 (618.6744) | 29 (161.6800) | 35 (151.9428) | 33 (158.2400) | 40 (146.8116) |
| Jun 15, 2018 | Desoto Shrine Club BBQ Cook off Hernado, MS | 38 / 45 (640.9828) | 29 (166.2628) | 33 (162.2400) | 38 (162.2400) | 40 (150.2400) |
| May 8, 2015 | Boss Hog State Championship Cook-Off (GBC Qualifier) 🏅 Waynesboro, GA | 34 / 39 (601.4976) | 35 (153.0860) | 13 (165.0972) | 35 (145.1200) | 37 (138.1944) |
| — | Smoke on the Midway (BACKYARD ONLY) Fairbury, IL | 11 / 17 (302.2056) | 5 (157.7144) | 15 (144.4912) | — | — |